Benedryl Allergy Sinus News

MONDAY, June 19, 2017 – The drug prochlorperazine is more effective than the opioid hydromorphone in treating emergency room patients with acute migraine, a new study reports. Acute migraine – an intense, throbbing headache that may be accompanied by visual disturbances and sensitivity to light and sound – is a disabling condition that results in 1.2 million visits to U.S. emergency rooms each year. The opioid painkiller "hydromorphone is given in about 25 percent of all emergency department visits for acute migraine. However, it's well known that the use of prescription opioids can lead to serious risks of addiction, abuse and overdose and adversely impact treatment of migraine," said Dr. Peter Goadsby, chairman of the American Headache Society's Scientific Program Committee. The new study was led by Dr. Benjamin Friedman of Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. The ... Read more

-- Your habits just before you slip into bed could be sabotaging your night of sleep. The National Sleep Foundation says do NOT: Take any over-the-counter medications that contain pseudoephedrine, found in common cold medicines, which can keep you awake. Opt for a nighttime formula that may help you feel drowsy. Text, watch TV or spend time on the computer shortly before bed. Take a hot shower or bath just before bed. It's best to do so about an hour before you plan to sleep, as that gives your body temperature time to drop again. Indulge in a greasy, fattening, salty bedtime snack, which can be stimulating and trigger nightmares. Drink caffeine beyond the morning, as it can stay in your system for as long as 12 hours. Read more

-- Planning a plane trip? There are steps you can take for a better, healthier excursion. Here are suggestions from the American Academy of Family Physicians: Store medication to be taken during the trip in a carry-on bag. Pack extra meds in case of unexpected delays. Talk to your doctor about whether you'll need to adjust your meds during your trip. Keep an identification card with you at all times if you have epilepsy or diabetes. Also, bring a list of all medications and doses, and your doctor's contact information. Drink plenty of water before and during your flight to prevent dehydration. Read more

TUESDAY, April 19, 2016 – Over-the-counter allergy medications may worsen symptoms of restless legs syndrome, a neurologist contends. People with the syndrome experience uncomfortable sensations and strong urges to move their legs, which can be painful and disrupt sleep, according to Dr. William Ondo. He is director of the Movement Disorders Clinic at Houston Methodist Hospital. Nearly 12 million people in the United States have restless legs syndrome, according to the American Sleep Association. "Patients with restless legs syndrome already have difficulty sleeping as their symptoms tend to worsen at night or with rest, but sedating antihistamines ... can intensify the symptoms," Ondo said in a hospital news release. Many people take sedating antihistamines to treat sneezing, runny nose and other symptoms of seasonal allergies. "We don't yet understand why sedating antihistamines ... Read more

TUESDAY, Sept. 8, 2015 – Fewer children are winding up in emergency rooms for accidental poisonings involving commonly used medications, a new U.S. government study finds. "We think these declines are real," said lead researcher Maribeth Lovegrove, of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's division of healthcare quality promotion. Between 2004 and 2013, approximately 640,000 children aged 5 and younger were seen in emergency rooms for ingesting drugs. Of these, 70 percent were 1- or 2-year-olds, and nearly one in five were hospitalized, according to the report. The number of pediatric emergency room visits rose during the early 2000s, peaking at approximately 76,000 in 2010, but declined to approximately 59,000 visits in 2013, Lovegrove said. While there has been a decline in emergency room visits, 59,000 visits a year for young children is still too many, Lovegrove ... Read more

-- If you're not getting enough sleep, it could be due to your activities before you hit the hay. The National Sleep Foundation warns against: Taking medications that contain pseudoephedrine, a stimulant. If you need relief from cold or allergy symptoms, opt for an antihistamine designed for night-time use. Don't watch TV, work at a computer or use a tablet or smartphone. Light from these screens can over-stimulate your brain. Opt for a book or music instead. Don't take a hot bath just before bed. Bathe at least an hour before so your body has time to cool off before sleep. Don't go to sleep with a full belly, especially if it's loaded with foods high in fat and salt. Don't drink beverages that contain caffeine after the morning. Caffeine can stay in your system for up to 12 hours. Read more

-- Most bee stings involve less-than-severe allergic reactions that don't require emergency medical care. To treat most bee stings, the Mayo Clinic advises: Use tweezers to remove the stinger from the skin as quickly as you can. The faster it's removed, the less venom is likely to enter the body. Use soap and water to gently cleanse the area. Sooth swelling and pain with a cold compress or ice pack. If the area is swollen, itchy or red, apply calamine lotion. Take an antihistamine containing diphenhydramine or chlorpheniramine if the itching or swelling is uncomfortable. Don't scratch the affected area. Doing so can lead to an infection. Read more

FRIDAY, March 27, 2015 – Medications for children – even those you can buy over-the-counter – can be dangerous if a child is given too much, one expert says. That's why pharmacist Sheila Goertemoeller, of the Cincinnati Drug and Poison Information Center, wants parents and other caregivers to know how to safely administer these drugs. Before giving medication to children, parents should carefully read the instructions first and use the appropriate measuring device to prevent accidental overdoses, cautioned Goertemoeller. These precautions are especially important if you're giving medicine to a sick child in the middle of the night, Goertemoeller noted. Dosing errors are made by 41 percent of parents, according to research from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Just taking a few minutes to turn on a light and read the directions will help ensure children get the right amount, ... Read more

MONDAY, Oct. 20, 2014 – A child receives the wrong medication or the wrong dosage every eight minutes in the United States, according to a recent study. Nearly 700,000 children under 6 years old experienced an out-of-hospital medication error between 2002 and 2012. Out of those episodes, one out of four children was under a year old. As the age of children decreased, the likelihood of an error increased, the study found. Though 94 percent of the mistakes didn't require medical treatment, the errors led to 25 deaths and about 1,900 critical care admissions, according to the study. "Even the most conscientious parents make errors," said lead author Dr. Huiyun Xiang, director of the Center for Pediatric Trauma Research at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. That conscientiousness may even lead to one of the most common errors: Just over a quarter of these mistakes involved a ... Read more

SUNDAY, March 17 – It's the time of year when cold season and allergy season overlap, and parents need to know the active ingredients in the medicines they give their children for these conditions, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns. Taking more than one medicine at a time could cause serious health problems if the drugs have the same active ingredient, which is the component that makes the medicine effective against a particular condition. For over-the-counter products, active ingredients are listed first on a medicine's Drug Facts label. For prescription medicines, active ingredients are listed in a patient package insert or consumer information sheet provided by the pharmacist, the FDA said. Many medicines have just one active ingredient. But combination medicines – such as those for allergy, cough or fever and congestion – may have more than one. Antihistamine is an ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 31 – Boys may be more likely than girls to abuse over-the-counter drugs, new study results suggest. University of Cincinnati researchers looked at over-the-counter (OTC) drug abuse among students in grades 7 through 12 in 133 schools across greater Cincinnati who took part in a 2009-2010 survey. Early analysis of the data showed that 10 percent of students said they abused over-the-counter drugs such as cough syrups and decongestants. This type of drug abuse can result in accidental poisoning, seizures and physical and mental addictions, the study authors pointed out in a university news release. High rates of over-the-counter drug abuse were found among male and female junior high school students. However, boys had a higher risk of longtime use of over-the-counter drugs compared with girls, the investigators found. Teens who reported abusing over-the-counter drugs were ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 21 – It's prudent to limit the use of over-the-counter cold and flu medications during pregnancy, experts say. This is because some medications may contain substances that are potentially harmful to developing fetuses, or that have not been well-studied for use in pregnant women. "Every year around this time, we get a significant number of calls from pregnant and breast-feeding women in California who are battling colds and are worried about which meds they can and can't take," said Christina Chambers, professor of pediatrics at University of California, San Diego and program director at the California Teratogen Information Service. To help expectant mothers who are sick this holiday season, Chambers offered these cold medicine safety tips: Take as little as possible. Over-the-counter cold remedies could contain up to six ingredients for a wide array of symptoms, such ... Read more

-- Over-the-counter medications may seem safer because they don't require a prescription. But they can still interact badly when alcohol enters the mix. The American Academy of Family Physicians mentions these popular medications that may have adverse effects if mixed with alcohol: NSAID pain relievers, which may lead to gastrointestinal bleeding if taken while consuming as few as two alcoholic drink per week. Acetaminophen, which may cause liver damage when taken with alcohol. Some OTC antihistamines can make you drowsy when taken with alcohol. Decongestants and cough medications that contain the cough suppressant dextromethorphan can increase drowsiness when taken with alcohol. Herbal supplements, such as kava kava, St. John's wort or valerian root, may increase drowsiness if taken with alcohol. Read more

WEDNESDAY, March 2 – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday that it plans to remove about 500 unapproved prescription cough, cold, and allergy medicines from pharmacy shelves. These drugs have not been evaluated by the FDA for safety and effectiveness, and they may be riskier to take than approved over-the-counter (OTC) drugs that treat these same conditions, agency officials explained. "This action is necessary to protect consumers from the potential risks posed by unapproved drugs, because we don't know what's in them, whether they work properly or how they are made," Deborah M. Autor, director of the agency's Office of Compliance at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said during a morning news conference. Of particular concern are drugs that have time-release formulations, Autor said. "We know from experience that these type of products are complicated to ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 16 – Many American parents of children aged 2 and younger still give over-the-counter cough and cold medicines to their kids despite U.S. Food and Drug Administration warnings to the contrary, researchers have found. In response to research linking over-the-counter (or OTC) cough and cold medicines to poisoning or death in hundreds of children ages 2 years and younger, the FDA said in 2008 that the products should not be given to children in this age group. In addition, studies have shown that these medicines have little benefit in controlling symptoms. A new national poll of over 300 parents of children ages 6 months to 2 years found that 61 percent of parents gave OTC cough and cold medicines to their children within the last 12 months. In addition, more than half of the parents said their child's doctor said the medicines are safe for children under 2 years, and ... Read more